I wouldn't be so optimistic. If voters are ever foolish enough to give Harper his majority, I suspect the HarperCon$ will start legislating things that will make 'A Handmaid's Tale' seem positively utopian.

So three failed back door attempts (private members' bills) and that internationally embarrassing proviso on the maternal health initiative... oh yeah, if Harper gets a majority, we'll be seeing swift changes to reproductive rights. Probably drafting plans for abortionist wings in those new prisons.

Holy cow, no one can win with you lefty wing-nuts. If Harper votes for the bill and he's a neo-con extremist with a hidden agenda--but he votes against it and he's really just waiting for a majority to perpetrate his evil agenda...get a grip---maybe you should be wondering about the 10 Liberals who voted for Bill C-510, instead of feeding your paranoid delusions about the ones that voted against it.

so stevie has been named co-chair of a new UN commission to track pledges and resources for maternal and child health care. That's probably why he vote no in this case. He needs to build some kind of positive image internationally because of how badly his government has trashed its standing.

Here's a thought: if Harper needs to appear moderate in order to *win* a majority, it follows that he'd have to *stay* moderate in order to *keep* the majority. The whole idea of *winning* the majority is *keeping* the majority: I'm sure Harper would be pleased to preside over 3 consecutive majority governments like Chretien. The idea that he'd win one majority and throw it away by suddenly going full metal socon is ludicrous on its face. (Not that he doesn't have some fairly radical policy ideas, just not on social issues.)

Bottom line, none of us will be voting for Harper anyway. So we'd be better off asking ourselves why the party that some of us *will* be voting for is infested with anti-choicers who table just as many anti-abortion bills as the CPC does.

"The idea that he'd win one majority and throw it away by suddenly going full metal socon is ludicrous on its face."

Maybe you're right, jj, but harper is deranged. He's really messed up on a personal level and it's difficult to say what such a crazy will do when he thinks he holds all the power. His own obscure hidden beliefs aside, he will eventually have to please his socon MPs or the right will split again. Lifesite comment section makes this clear. harper being harper is bound to miscalculate how normal people will react and he may think any outcry on socon policies can be countered with his fear mongering, diversionary politics. He.ll also count on the control and power he has gained even with a minority government through undermining avenues available for protest, court challenges, etc.

I see a guy who has absolute belief in his sense of knowing better than anyone else situating himself where he can say fuck you to anyone who opposes him. That,s what's behind all of this undermining of arm's length agencies and what's behind blocking off access to information, what's behind shutting out media and creating his own infomercials. You may be right, but I wouldn't underestimate him. That we find it so hard to believe anyone can be that sick is what sometimes makes us drop our guard. Sounds too crazy to point out how crazy he is. History has given us examples of madmen who have gone crazier with power. He's vicious and has a huge, inflated sense of his own power. dangerous.